The challenges you face when selling AI technology, whether to a niche or wide audience, continue to be compounded by ever-present concerns around the ethics behind use of AI as an aid – no matter the industry.
Our team is here to help you meet those challenges head-on. Here, we’ll walk through real-world examples and share practical insights for selling AI solutions to help you avoid pitfalls and criticism, like the backlash seen around The Brutalist prior to The Academy Awards.
Starting today, unlock the full potential of AI for your business and drive long-term adoption, whether you’re a salesperson, business owner, or marketing and communications specialist.
Before you continue: Did you click on this hoping to find resources that explain how to tailor your marketing to AI algorithms? If so, click here, here or here. If not, keep reading!
Table of Contents
- Selling AI in Today’s Competitive Landscape
- How to Market and Sell AI Products and Services
- AI Product and Service Marketing and Sales Success Stories
- Start Selling AI Successfully with Help from the Experts at PAN
Selling AI in Today’s Competitive Landscape
While generative AI dominated headlines in 2023 and 2024, AI adoption has now entered a more mature phase. Global enterprise AI spending is projected to reach $337 billion by the end of 2025. This significant investment indicates a shift from experimental AI pilots to full-scale implementations, with businesses focusing on ROI, efficiency, and competitive differentiation.
This is to say: There’s no question that AI products and services are revolutionizing work across multiple industries, creating efficiencies and enhancing capabilities, at a rapid pace.
On the topic of selling AI solutions, though, existing and prospective customers don’t always understand the landscape. In fact, it’s likely that they often over (or under) estimate related capabilities. Let’s consider some key obstacles companies face.
Challenge 1: Lack of Understanding
Let’s face it, not everyone understands AI. This lack of understanding yields apprehension when faced with the prospect of adopting a new solution.
One way to simplify this for customers is by avoiding AI speak. Jargon like “machine learning,” “deep learning,” and more can come off as complex and cause some buyers to tune you out. Our advice: Make your technology approachable by speaking to the problems it can solve (and avoid terms that are seen as jargon).
Challenge 2: Differentiation
If you haven’t realized by now, the competition among AI players is fierce. When developing a go-to-market plan, understanding your competition is a crucial step. Let’s take the major players like Microsoft, Google, and Meta, as an example. Microsoft is ahead of the game when it comes to cloud-based AI for businesses, whereas Google and Meta lead the pack for AI research and development.
Get ahead of customers by zeroing in on how you stand out. Define your AI product or service around its unique value proposition and make a case for what differentiates your tools from others on the market, whether from established players like Google or specialized startups.
Challenge 3: Ethical and Security Concerns
Perhaps the most glaring issue for customers, understandably, when it comes to AI is concerns around vendor data policies. Whether a member organization, retail business, or healthcare provider, consumer (or patient) data is sensitive. How a company manages said data involves regulation, and introducing a new factor into the mix raises red flags around security, legality, and ethics.
To combat these concerns, it’s critical that sales teams are educated on all features and understand the compliance and certifications that your software (and/or company) holds. Lead with this so prospects don’t have to ask.
How to Market and Sell AI Products and Services
In healthcare, AI has the ability to swiftly analyze patient data with the aim of identifying potential health risks or predicting disease progression. For finance professionals, it can be used to detect fraud or churn out personalized investment advice. These scenarios barely scratch the surface of the different use cases AI solutions might offer.
The key to marketing (and selling) your technology is communicating what makes it unique. How will your tech streamline someone’s day-to-day? What problem are you solving? Answering these questions clearly for potential customers is essential to successful sales.
How to Market AI Products and Services
With the right marketing approach (and agency experts like PAN), you can avoid both chaos and confusion among prospects. Launching a new product is often scary – if not terrifying – and the energy and anticipation within your team can lead to high stress. By leaning on agency partners, you can alleviate some of that stress, which better positions you to focus on flawless campaign execution.
If you’re new to marketing strategy and are unsure how to kick off your marketing efforts, we’ve got you. Let’s walk through what you’ll need in order to develop a foolproof campaign strategy and framework.
Don’t: Lead With “AI”
This may sound counterintuitive, but “AI” has become such a buzzword that, chances are, it’s lost much of its meaning among your consumers.
AI should support your message and positioning within your market, but it shouldn’t be the core focus. Don’t give your audience the chance to tune you out from the get-go.
Don’t: Lean Too Hard into the Tech
It’s true. Your algorithm and training sets are part of what set your technology apart from others. But, if we’re being honest, this comes back to jargon and consumer understanding. When you’re working to convince new adopters – which you likely will be – leaning too hard into tech terms can be off putting.
The best way to demonstrate that you know what you’re talking about is by developing a simple way to explain. Think “explain like I’m five,” shortened to ELI5 in slang, which just so happens to be a well-known use of AI (and a popular Reddit forum).
Don’t: Overpromise What AI Can Deliver
AI is powerful, but it’s not magic. Today’s buyers know that. One of the biggest marketing pitfalls to avoid here: overselling what your product can do. This leads to inflated expectations that, in turn, lead to disappointment and churn.
At a time when Americans’ trust in AI is low (just 32 percent trust it), it’s imperative that AI marketers build trust in their outreach, collateral, and thought leadership. How?
- Provide proof points. Use real-world case studies, customer testimonials, and data-backed insights to reinforce your claims. AI skepticism is high, and decision-makers need tangible proof before they invest.
- Avoid “black box” messaging. Transparency around how AI models work, what data they rely on, and how they make decisions can go a long way in building trust. Customers want to know that AI tools are fair, explainable, and secure – especially in regulated industries like finance, healthcare, and cybersecurity.
- Address concerns head-on. From bias to data privacy to regulatory compliance, many businesses have real concerns about implementing AI. Ignoring these issues – or downplaying them – can backfire. Instead, tackle them proactively in your thought leadership and customer conversations.
Do: Focus on Value
When it comes to AI products, you’re more often than not targeting a B2B audience. Similar to how a vacation appeals to someone grinding away at work, you want your messaging to emphasize emotions and demonstrate what your product does for them.
Generating leads for your sales team is all about positioning. In fact, technologies that AI have failed to find an audience often do so because they’re too focused on what’s innovative. The truth of the matter is that audiences don’t care unless they know how your technology can solve their problems.
Do: Stay Connected to Your Audience
When it comes your current customers, you know their day-to-day challenges better than anyone. Lean into that to pull out messaging you can use to upsell an AI solution. If you have blind spots, do some discovery. Survey your communities online, ask your customers, and get to the root of the existing or emerging issues that they’re facing. With a “help us help you” mentality, everyone wins.
Do: Analyze Your ICP for What They Need and How They’re Performing
As with any marketing strategy, an AI go-to-market approach needs to be heavily informed by data. From PANtelligence to PANoptics, we root all of our work in data, and our clients’ stories are proof of why that works.
When launching a new product, whether in an emerging, highly competitive space like AI or within a tried-and-true market, there are some key areas you need to keep in mind (hint: research, research, research):
- Competitive Landscape – Dive into the competition you’ll face at launch. Who are their customers? What are their strengths and weaknesses? What messages are they leading with?
- Market Position – Identify what differentiates you from the competition and determine your place in the market. How is your solution distinct to your business? What makes your tech a better choice for the customers whose problems you’re solving? Why should existing users adopt new functionality?
- Customer Profiling – Define your ideal customer, also known as the customer your developers had in mind when designing the tool. Whether it’s one or five, it’s important to be specific. Create profiles for each type of customer and look into where they shop, spend time online, and more.
How to Sell AI Products and Services
So far, we’ve established that AI isn’t going anywhere. This means that companies led by people who can master the art of selling AI in such a competitive space will flourish.
The trick? Understanding buyer apprehensions and challenges – and knowing how to overcome them.
Establish the Benefits
Chances are, you’ve banked on AI to build your product or service because it’s best positioned to make the lives of your customers easier, not harder. If you want to sell AI, you need to focus on its benefit to your end user.
While this is not a revolutionary sales tactic, positioning AI should be no different from other products and services, especially amid likely apprehensions about exactly what it can do.
Be clear and concise in your messaging, and focus on exactly how your technology can help prospective and existing customers.
Highlight the Outcomes
Take benefits one step further than features by offering proof. This can come from leaning on your data and outcomes (i.e., requests processed per day) or those of existing customers (i.e., money and time saved).
This focus on return on investment (ROI) is likely to lead your salespeople to close. In a market where budgets are tightly managed, the success metrics must be there to help justify the cost of a new solution. Why not help your prospects paint a picture?
Educate the Customer
Whether on your website, in your emails, or during demonstrations, every bit of real estate should focus on educating prospects on the specifics of what your product or services does – and how it supports their business needs.
Marry those benefit statements and ROI metrics with actual product use-cases and imagery. Show in addition to telling.
Consider the Cost
It’s well established that offering free trials or “complimentary” features is the number one way to bring in customers and get them excited. Just look at the speed with which ChatGPT built a one million-plus user base.
This is smart because it can help your sales personnel reach a broader audience. Businesses that don’t quite have the budget (or need to be persuaded) will be more likely to test your tool, while those that do have budget will take less convincing to get started. Why? You’ve democratized access and offered prospective users the freedom to see what you can do for themselves.
AI Product and Service Marketing and Sales Success Stories
AI isn’t here to steal our thunder, but rather to take some weight off our shoulders by enhancing daily efforts across industries. Here, we present some companies whose marketing and sales efforts have taken their business to new heights in recent years.
Synopsys Stays Ahead of the News Cycle
A leading provider of technology for software security, quality, and testing, including AI solutions, Synopsys came to PAN upon acquisition of Black Duck when they faced visibility and thought leadership challenges within the cybersecurity space. At the time, they needed to stay ahead of news cycles, maintain position as a go-to source for media, and manage PR efforts across global agencies.
To tackle the challenge, a rapid response and research strategy was built with the aim of establishing their expertise through content – reports and blogs – covering vulnerability disclosures. PAN also aided a customer acquisition strategy, driving visibility and media coverage upwards of 2,000 stories.
Hear more from the team behind Synopsys.
Rapid7 Expands Subject Matter Expertise
Since going public in 2015, Rapid7 has continued to build a reputation as a leader in cloud security operations, enabling its clients to proactively prevent data breaches. Whether working in tandem with existing solutions or employing generative AI within its tools, the Rapid7 team needs to maintain a consistent presence as a subject-matter expert in order to attract and keep customers.
In partnership with PAN, the team drove impactful coverage year over year, whether from earned or authored pieces, leading to 3.6 billion impressions.
Interested in the archives? Discover historic thinking from Rapid7 on security marketing.
Weave Cuts through the Noise Pre- and Post-IPO
Weave, an all-in-one customer communication and engagement platform for small and medium-sized businesses, faced the challenge of standing out in a saturated market during its IPO on Veteran’s Day.
To differentiate the brand, PAN crafted a compelling narrative that highlighted both the company’s business achievements and the personal passions of CEO Roy Banks, a U.S. Navy veteran and one of the few Black CEOs to take a company public in 2021. This strategy not only showcased Weave’s market momentum but also emphasized its commitment to diversity and veteran representation.
The campaign resulted in 46 unique IPO-related articles, 700 million impressions, and eight media interviews on listing day, effectively elevating Weave’s brand presence during this pivotal milestone.
Check out the full case study.
Bitdefender Boosts Brand Visibility
Back to cybersecurity, Bitdefender is known worldwide for its best-in-class threat prevention, detection, and response technology solutions. But, amid a rapidly evolving market for machine learning, the team at Bitdefender needed to increase brand visibility broadly across the minds of its peers and customers alike.
Enter the team at PAN, who worked as a true extension of Bitdefender’s communication team to focus on proactive outreach, rapid response, and thought leadership. From advising on trends to staying ahead of breaking industry news, the collaboration helped successfully gain recognition of Bitdefender Labs as home to top research and security practitioners, achieving over 6.1 billion impressions.
Vercara Elevates Awareness with “Moments that Matter”
Vercara, formerly Neustar, reached a dilemma just months after its rebrand: low brand awareness.
Along came the “Moments that Matter” campaign, which showcased Vercara’s ability to protect real people during times that matter most in their lives. To build brand demand, efforts aimed to capitalize on breaking cybersecurity news, such as timely ChatGPT attacks, DNS critical infrastructure needs, and pitches related to industry-recognized calendar events.
Check out the full case study.
EdgeCore Captures Attention with Go-to-Market Strategy
To drive demand for density in the era of AI, EdgeCore Digital Infrastructure – which operates a network of cloud-secure data centers in key U.S. regions – sought to engage its target audience with an AI-centric go-to-market plan.
EdgeCore’s new market position, “designed for density,” demonstrated why the company is best suited to house hyperscale workloads in the age of AI. This was important due to the AI boom’s massive effect on venture capital investments in AI. The team worked with elite journalists to thread its top-tier tale, helping C-suite executives to develop prominent industry relationships and connections.
Check out the full case study.
Start Selling AI Successfully with Help from the Experts at PAN
When it comes down to it, the buzz for AI is often bigger than the adoption. This means that selling AI products isn’t as easy as one might think. Yet, undoubtedly, businesses that leverage AI are benefiting from automated workflows, virtual assistance, and data analysis at scale.
Despite fears that AI may be over-valued (*ahem* last year’s stock-market dip), Silicon Valley tech companies are poised to spend $1 trillion investing in AI over the coming years. In a recent Vox article on the AI bubble, a Vox reporter quoted that “while many people and companies try out AI services like ChatGPT, far fewer stick with it.”
Don’t be a victim to customers not sticking with your product or service. With PAN experts in your corner, we’ll help you take the next step toward AI greatness and find the right audience for the tech you’re building and improving every day.
Curious about how else AI can and should inform your work? Check out our insights section!
Want to discuss your approach to selling AI and marketing AI products? Let’s talk!
